I interviewed Ms. Pring, an Algebra teacher.

What is your opinion on NWEA? What is something you like about it?
“NWEA seems to be more accurate of students’ algebra skills than IXL (which underestimates ability) and Evaluate (which tested more what you could memorize). I like that it’s adaptive so students are seeing questions better to their own level. I also like that the growth goals can be individualized.”

What is something you dislike about it?
“It’s very long and involved. It is a lot all at once for students, many of whom need a lot longer than the recommended 45 minutes. Most students are not accustomed to being tested in a lot of different things at once and so it is a massive shock to them. I also don’t like that it doesn’t directly give IXL recommendations for each student to focus on (and that they have to ALSO do that diagnostic).”

Do you think it helps you understand where the students are in terms of their knowledge in math?
“It has really nice reports that pinpoint what skills students are ready to develop or be introduced to. Everything is individualized.”

Do you think it’s better than the last program we used? Why or Why not?
“I definitely prefer it to Evaluate for the reasons in my first point, but only time will really tell. We’ve only had one test at the moment and without seeing how it goes over the year, it’s difficult to make a good comparison.”